TRADING SESSIONS CHARACTERISTICS

6. Okt. 2023

In this post, we will look at the three major forex sessions and their features to understand when and where we can expect volatility and movement in the forex markets. This will be helpful for those who want to associate their forex market trading as a day trader.

Main Sessions in the Forex Market
When trading currencies or indices, there are three main sessions that occur every day. We all know that the currency market is open 24 hours, but during those hours when the markets are open there are spikes and lulls in volume and volatility that we need to be aware of.

Asian Session
The Asian session comes first. The reason why the trading day starts with it is that it opens the trading week as early as Sunday, at 8:00 am in Tokyo and 9:00 am in Sydney. This session is usually marked by very volatile price action, with the exception of some pairs (JPY, AUD, NZD) occasionally showing volatility during the Asian session. In addition, there is usually little volume or manipulation by banks and financial institutions at this time, resulting in very organic and slow price movements.

Liquidity at the Asian Session
There is one interesting feature here. This thing is that a little volatility in the Asian session is created naturally, because of this over the range of the session, above and below, liquidity is created. As the London session begins, the price moves strongly to one side. When day trading, you must realize and consider that that liquidity above and below the Asian session range is highly likely to be absorbed almost immediately after the London session opens.


London Session
Following the Asian session, the London session opens. This time is the main trading time in the UK and Europe. Why do people love the London session? Asia tends to accumulate liquidity in or around its range, the further out, the more volatile the market gets. When trading opens in Frankfurt or London, there is a huge volume of orders coming into the market. This creates ideal trading conditions, especially for those who want to capitalize on large intraday movements.

Before London Opens
The official opening starts at 8:00 am local time. The London session is characterized by high volatility for the first 2-3 hours, after which this volatility starts to slow down as both retail traders and financial institutions start having lunch. London time is great, especially if you will be trading major pairs, European indices or equities, because London movement is real movement.

Lull in London Session
From about 11:00 to 12:00 (noon), price fluctuations quieten down a bit as the major movements in the London session come to an end. This does not mean that the trading day is over and there is no more volatility, from three o'clock and up to an hour before or after the opening of the New York session you can see it rising again. Most traders who trade both sessions take a break, and those who trade only the London session may call it a day.


New York Session
Next we have the New York session, which is a favorite for those living in North and South America, as well as for Europeans who are just too lazy to get up early for the London session and prefer to start trading at 13:00 local time zone. The New York session is special because it also includes the opening of the US stock market, which leads to volatility in certain asset classes that forex traders can trade, including indices.

Before the Opening New York Session
As with the opening in Frankfurt before London, the hour before the session opens is worth devoting some attention to trading and analysis. There is usually a bit of a lull with volatility during this time frame as well. This is something to be aware of and remember, as a good trader, that normal movement will soon begin again.

Opening of New York Session
Next, the New York currency session opens at 8:00 am EST, which is usually accompanied by a lot of volatility, but not as consistently as the hour or two of the London session. During the New York session, you will usually see a big spike in volatility across the major pairs and North American indices, and sometimes a little volatility into the evening. It should be noted that the London session closes at 4:00 p.m. local time, which means lower volumes from London banks and other financial institutions.

The Highs and Lows of the Day
The day's highs the day's lows are key liquidity levels that can either be consumed or used as target liquidity to drive movement. Typically, you will want to mark the highs and lows of previous days to get an idea of what liquidity is being harvested where, as well as the current day's high and low if globally you are in a price range.

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